Development

When did you start developing for flight simulators?

For me, flight sim is a creative outlet. I personally find going from A to B very boring; never really saw the great appeal in that. Making stuff is much more stimulating in my view. So I started with little freeware contributions way, way back, sometime before 2000. I turned Pro around 2003. At that time, I was using the FS2004 PMDG 737; it was my favorite plane. I thought "Man, this is a great plane, but it's not realistic to fly it single pilot, like it was some kind of Cessna 150. Where's the FO? Where's the FA's? Where's the ground crew?"

So I decided then and there to indulge my creative passions and develop an airline crew simulation for the FS2004 PMDG 737.

My first product was well received, and we've been going strong ever since, trying to make each product better than the last and raise the bar with each new release.

FS2Crew has evolved massively over the last ten years; it's quite amazing comparing our first release back in 2003 to what we can do now, especially with our latest 'voice control' offerings which are very well liked by our users.

Our evolution over the last ten years has been quite dramatic.

How many designs have you done or worked with?

Well, I don't have that many fingers and toes to count them all. Let's just say, "a lot".

What do you consider your best or most popular work?

Most popular without a doubt is the PMDG 737 NGX version of FS2Crew. Coupled with the Emergency NGX expansion pack, it's about as real as you're going to get.

Our recently released Aerosoft Airbus X Series Voice and Button Control product is also proving to be very popular, but it's too early to tell if it will beat the NGX in terms of user numbers.

What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of a project?

Hard to narrow it down to one single thing. Having to be a jack of all trades is certainly part of it. Trying to explain to family friends that I make, among other things, flight simulator products is another.

Some of them think I made Microsoft Flight Simulator all by myself (like, sure, that's a one man job!)

Seriously, the most challenging part is the act of creating something out of nothing, and bringing it to market: it is a massively complex and involved process. Trust me on this! A lot of end users, I don't think realize just how complex the whole process is, and it's a process made even more complex by the fact that no one is sitting together in an office operating in the same time zone. The team of people who come together to create an FS2Crew are scattered, quite literally, all over the world.

A close second challenging item would be working with our pilot consultants. We generally use real-world pilots who are currently flying the aircraft we're modelling to develop the procedures we model in the simulation.

So of course, when you get three pilots in the same room together, you're going to get three different answers for absolutely everything.

Coordinating the voice actors is also pretty tough!

Of course then there's the aftermarket support. It's not uncommon for users to leave out critical bits of information when submitting support requests.

A typical support conversation can go like:

Customer: "Help, FS2Crew doesn't work...".

Me: "Okay, can you be more specific..."

Ten emails later with still no resolution...

Customer: "Oh, I forget to mention, FS2Crew worked fine last week. It was only after I tried my own home brew modification and tried to conjoin Windows XP and Window 8 that the problem started happening..."

Me: Face palm.

What are some of the more unique or special aspects of what you create?

FS2Crew makes a serious effort to faithfully recreate airline crew simulations in detail, so we're like a niche within a niche.

Most of our users would be described as 'hardcore' simmer types. They don't want to do loops over their house. They want to fly from A to B in their 737 or Airbus using the most realistic procedures possible.

I also develop other side projects that aren't crew related. FS2Crew has created a RAAS product and we're currently working on a new stand-alone pushback utility as well as some apps that will be used in real airplanes.

What have been your favorite projects?

Our recently released Aerosoft Airbus project was quite fun. Because the Airbus is so automated, they're rather easy to work with, and the Aerosoft programmers were very easy and helpful to work with.

What software packages and tools do you use to develop?

The big three: Visual Studio C++ for the code, Adobe Audition for Sound Editing, Paint Shop for graphics.

Who would you consider to be your mentors or inspiration in the development world?

In terms of big picture stuff, right now I'd have to say Elon Musk is currently quite inspiring. In terms of flightsim stuff, I'd have to say Lou Betti of DreamFleet fame, even though he left the flightsim scene ages ago.

The first payware I ever bought was his DreamFleet 737 way back in 2001 or whenever it was. I was a totally indigent student at that time, and I remember reaching for my credit card and saying to myself that this is nuts spending $50 on a Flight Simulator add-on. But it was one of the best purchases I ever made, and it introduced me to the concept of the professional software developer who can get paid for having fun and playing flightsim all day. Sure beats making boring accounting software!

Do you develop payware/freeware or both and why?

I've done freeware, such as FS Checkride, but these days it's pretty well all payware. The amount of time and money that each product takes to develop doesn't make doing it for free feasible, as much as I wish I could. We also have to pay many of our contractors. We need to be able to recover our costs.

Current Products

Tell us a little about the products you offer now and how they came about?

The two most recent products are FS2Crew for the Aerosoft Airbus X Series and the PMDG 737 NGX. They came about because they're probably the two most popular aircraft right now in FSX. And I personally really like the 737NG and A320.

The Team

How many people work with you or your team?

Tons, and they're scattered all over God's Green Acre. Part of the fun of being an FS Developer is being up at 2 or 3 am dealing with people in different time zones.

What other developers or teams have you worked with and what where their rolls?

I work with PMDG usually, and just recently started working with Aerosoft and their developers. A big thing about FS2Crew is getting FS2Crew to "talk" to the host aircraft, and to do that we usually need to have an open line of communication with the host aircraft developers.

Among others, I also contract out some work to Fermin Fernandez of TweakFS / FSwidgets fame, and a host of others.

Real Life

Do you have any experience in real aviation?

I am a certified commercial pilot with all the pieces of paper that go along with that, including flight instructor certification. But I left aviation a long time ago and haven't flown in years. I loved the airplanes, but I'm a creative type who likes to play by his own rules. And I figured out soon enough that if you want to get ahead in life, you have to be the Captain of your own ship. You have to work for yourself.

So I became an internet entrepreneur.

Best move I ever made in my life.

However, aviation is still in my blood. And once aviation is in your system, it never leaves. It's like a chronic disease. I've often dreamed about owning my own little charter company here in Asia where I live, maybe have a little Cessna or a Navajo. Putting aside the sheer regulatory nightmare of running your own aviation business as a foreigner, I'm all too aware that in the hundred year history of aviation the total profit has been about $5. Aviation is a pretty tough industry. But maybe someday if the right opportunity comes along and I feel like throwing all my money out the window, I'll bite!

Any memorable flights in real life?

It was kind of a juvenile thing to do, but I took a girl on a date in a rented airplane once. I really wanted to impress her and convey the impression that being a pilot takes super human skills and Tiger Woods level hand-eye coordination, which anyone who has done it knows is not true at all. Fact is if you can drive a car you can probably fly a plane.

So I passed the controls over to her and then started discretely making large rudder and elevator trim inputs while she was trying to hold the plane straight and level. Of course the plane was pitching and yawing all over the place due to my actions. She lasted about three seconds before she let out a frightened yelp and insisted I retake control of the plane. I then centered the rudders and stopped moving the elevator trim, then smoothly returned the plane back to straight and level and held it with my fingertips alone. She was so impressed. I think I did a great service to the pilot community that day keeping the myths and illusions about pilots' alive, hahahaha.

What started your interest in real aviation and developing for flight simulators?

It was the classic first ride on an airplane when I was four. I thought it was pretty amazing at the time. Then, when I was 8, I saw the Empire Strikes Back, which solidified my desire to be a pilot because Luke flew the X-Wing Fighter and he was the hero of course.

This fascination naturally progressed into flight simulators like Chopper Run for the Vic 20, and Jet, Solo Flight and Flight Simulator II for the Commodore 64, and so on from there.

Of course, in 1996, I, like everyone else, saw Top Gun, which made me want to become a fighter pilot. But then I watched Full Metal Jacket, and after that the military got scratched off the list pretty quick. My only military experience in life happens when I get asked for ID by the Town Patrol past curfew hours.

After I graduated from university, I took a familiarization flight in a little Katana. It was totally different from flight sim on a desktop computer. As much as people say FSX is "real", it still feels nothing like doing it in the real thing. But I loved it so I continued my training from there.

Would you like to share what you do in real life?

I like foreign cultures and differences, so I travel a lot and stay in other countries for long stretches of time so I can really get to know the place. I'm a serial entrepreneur, and I dream up whacky business ideas and implement them (I once started a dating web site, which turned out to be a dramatic flop... the blind leading the blind I suppose, hahaha...).

Since home base for me is Asia, I hang out with all my loopy and always colorful expat friends. GI's, English Teachers, Corporate Guys, Engineering Guys, and various other misfits and exiles from Western society... we got our own little motley crew of oddballs over here, and they can easily keep one entertained for hours on end.

Have you ever considered doing flight simulator development full-time?

Heavens no! Then it would be a real job and it wouldn't be fun anymore! Besides, flight sim is too much of a niche business. By flight sim standards I think FS2Crew does very well, but it would be very difficult to make a living off flight sim alone.

Anyone who goes into the flightsim business trying to "get rich" is going to be in for a pretty big shock. You have to do it because you love airplanes and computers and enjoy running organizations. It's a heck of a lot of work and you have to have the patience of a saint. Not many people can pull it off and do it well. If you're doing it to make lots of money, don't even bother.

Future

How do you choose your next new design or project?

Basically we select the most popular aircraft with the largest possible user base, usually all the PMDG stuff. Generally, the host aircraft needs to have an SDK so FS2Crew can "talk" to the plane.

What simulators do you design for now and what ones do you plan to develop for in the future?

Pretty well all FSX, with FS2004 and P3D support where possible. But I've also done a couple small mobile apps for Android and iOS.

Future: We'll have to see what it holds. I think FSX is going to be with us for a very long time as the primary flight sim. That said, there are some things I like about X-Plane, but I think X-Plane is still several generations away from replacing FSX as the platform of choice for the majority of simmers. Austin's a brilliant guy, but he's still got a long ways to go yet in my view if he wants to capture the 'mass' of the simulation market. Prepar3D is a bit of a wild card. Not sure how it will go, especially with V2 on the horizon.

In what ways do you see development changing in the future?

I don't see a change. It will be status quo. You'll still have small teams of Indie developers pumping out flight sim add-ons just like you do now. Developers will still continue to come and go, just as users enter and leave the hobby.

Like any business, a lot of developers will flounder never to be seen or heard of again once they realize just how brutally tough the payware industry is, some will just barely get by, and a few will really succeed and do well (by the standards of flightsim, that is, not World of Warcraft standards).

What can sites like FlightSim.Com do to support you and the hobby better?

Keep on the present course. Write reviews. Publish our press releases. Help get the world out. Host forums. Try to keep things fresh and positive.

How do you feel about the future of flight simulation in general?

Future predictions? Aside from my recurring visions of going off the deep end and turning into some kind of John McAfee after loading up FSX one too many times, it's hard to say. Seriously, most of the flight simulator enthusiasts are older guys, and long term there may be a demographic crunch as some of the older simmers trade in their joysticks for a box of Depends.

Sadly, aviation has lost a lot of the magic it had back in the 60s and 70s when jet travel for the masses was still considered to be a pretty exotic thing. However, most people nowadays associate jet travel with stress and aggravation rather than something exciting. Also word has gotten out that terms and conditions for pilots have steadily deteriorated over the years, making it hard to justify the cost of flight training, which certainly isn't cheap.

That said, I think it's going to be a challenge getting young people interested in aviation, and its off shoot flight simulation. And of course when guys like Capt Sully go on national TV and tell people that he'd never recommend aviation to his kids, that doesn't help much either.

What are some of the most important things a site or community can do to help the developers?

Help get the word out about our new products. This stuff is very, very niche market. It's not Battlefield 3 or Call of Duty! To survive, every customer counts!

What would you like people to know about you or your team and work?

Thank you for supporting FS2Crew for all these years! Without you, FS2Crew would not exist. Period. We do our best to deliver a serious and realistic product, but at the same time we try to keep it light. Flightsim is a hobby business and it's supposed to be fun, not something that causes you to lose your hair. Approach FSX with an open mind. Enjoy it!

Bryan York
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